Sony CDX-DAB6650 - In-Car DAB Head Unit Comments

Hi, Benny,

I've had the Sony CDX-DAB6650 in my last three cars, and my experiences co-incide with your report.

I've not had any real difficulty in installing the DAB6650. It was a straight swap in my Fiats, and required a Connects2 harness adaptor for the Citroën to enable remote control from the steering wheel.

The supplied internal windscreen aerail worked well on the Fiats, but getting a strong signal on the Citroën required an external aerial to be fitted as the windscreen is athermic, reflecting a lot of UV and other signals, so severely reducing the signal strength.

I agree with you about pre-setting the DAB channels on the DAB6650 - it can be a pain, especially when travelling around the country and looking for local MUXs. The National DAB networks are is fine. Local transmitters seem prone to going AWOL when the car is in a motorway cutting or in a shadow in town. The National DABs are not really prone to this except in a few places (e.g northern end of the M6 Toll).

The display needs improving and enlarging, so that at least the time, the channel, the pre-set number and mode, and the scrolling text.

The DAB sound is what you'd expect; a bit thin and clinical when compared to FM. I can play my iPod through it, but it's a messy procedure as all the controls are on the iPod. A separate power supply maybe be needed for the iPod, it needs to be at full volume, and the iPod continues playing if the TA kicks in or the source is changed.

While it performs well, I sometimes wonder if Radio5, Gold and Highways Traffic were on FM whether I'd use it at all.

And to cap it all, it's no use on the continent as they're moving to DAB+.